Castlederg
  • Irish: Caisleán na Deirge
The Diamond, Castlederg
Castlederg is located in Northern Ireland
Castlederg
Castlederg
Location within Northern Ireland
Population2,980 (2021 Census)[1]
Irish grid referenceH262845
• Belfast85 miles
District
County
CountryNorthern Ireland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townCASTLEDERG
Postcode districtBT81
Dialling code028
PoliceNorthern Ireland
FireNorthern Ireland
AmbulanceNorthern Ireland
UK Parliament
NI Assembly

Castlederg (earlier Caslanadergy, from Irish Caisleán na Deirge, meaning 'castle on the Derg')[2] is a town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It lies on the River Derg and is near the border with County Donegal, Ireland. It stands in the townlands of Castlesessagh and Churchtown,[3] in the historic barony of Omagh West and the civil parish of Urney.[4] The village has a ruined castle and two ancient tombs known as the Druid's Altar and Todd's Den. It had a population of 2,980 people at the 2021 Census.[5]

The village hosts some of the district's key events each year, including the Derg Vintage Rally, Dergfest music festival, Red River Festival and the traditional Apple Fair.

Castlederg was a traveller's stop along the ancient pilgrimage route to Station Island on Lough Derg. The town boasts ancient ruins and monastic settlements.

History

Early history

Historically the area around the town was a site of contestation between the territories of Cenél nEógain (later Tír Eoghain) and Connail (later Tír Chonaill - mostly modern County Donegal). This rivalry between the two powers continued until the 16th century when they combined in the defence of Ulster against the encroaching Elizabethan armies. The Castlederg area, lying within the new barony of Omagh, was granted to the English Attorney-General for Ireland, Sir John Davies. Two castles were constructed on his proportion, Castle Curlews (Kirlish Castle) outside Drumquin and Derg Castle, the ruins of which can be seen today on the northern bank of the River Derg at Castlederg.[6] A bronze-age cauldron was found at Castlederg in 2011.[7]

The Troubles

During the Troubles, 25 people were killed in and around Castlederg (including Killeter and Killen)[8] and there were many bombings in the village. The Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) killed 11 members of the Ulster Defence Regiment and Royal Ulster Constabulary, four fellow IRA members whom it accused of being informers, and three Ulster Protestant civilians.[8] Four IRA members were also killed when their bombs exploded prematurely. Ulster loyalist paramilitaries killed three Catholic civilians.[8] For more information, see The Troubles in Castlederg.

Transport

The narrow-gauge Castlederg and Victoria Bridge Tramway was built in 1883, to link the village with the Great Northern Railway (Ireland) at Victoria Bridge. Castlederg railway station opened on 4 July 1884, but was finally closed on 17 April 1933.[9]

Demography

19th century population

The population of the village increased during the 19th century:[3][10]

Year184118511861187118811891
Population476596637703756796
Horses81102106119137155

2011 Census

Castlederg is classified as an intermediate settlement by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) (i.e. with a population between 2,500 and 4,999 people).[11] On Census Day (27 March 2011) the usually resident population of Castlederg Settlement was 2,976, accounting for 0.16% of the NI total.[12] Of these:

  • 19.72% were under 16 years old and 16.97% were aged 65 and above;
  • 48.42% of the population were male and 51.58% were female; and
  • 58.67% were from a Catholic community background and 40.22% were from a 'Protestant and Other Christian (including Christian related)' community background.
  • 36.56% indicated that they had a British national identity, 34.54% had an Irish national identity, and 30.51% had a Northern Irish national identity.

2021 Census

On Census Day (21 March 2021) the usually resident population of Castlederg Settlement was 2,980.[5] Of these:

  • 57.25% were from a Catholic community background and 38.19% were from a 'Protestant and Other Christian (including Christian related)' community background.[13]
  • 26.83% indicated that they had a British only identity, 38.22% had an Irish only identity, and 23.92% had a Northern Irish only identity.[14] When respondents could select more than one nationality, 34.0% identified as British,[15] 39.8% identified as Irish,[16] and 32.4% identified as Northern Irish.[17]

Climate

Climate data for Castlederg
WMO ID: 03904; coordinates 54°42′25″N 7°34′39″W / 54.70698°N 7.5775°W / 54.70698; -7.5775 (Met Castlederg); elevation: 49 m (161 ft), 1981–2010 normals
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 7.4
(45.3)		 7.9
(46.2)		 9.9
(49.8)		 12.2
(54.0)		 15.3
(59.5)		 17.4
(63.3)		 18.9
(66.0)		 18.6
(65.5)		 16.6
(61.9)		 13.2
(55.8)		 9.8
(49.6)		 7.4
(45.3)		 12.9
(55.2)
Daily mean °C (°F) 4.4
(39.9)		 4.6
(40.3)		 6.2
(43.2)		 7.9
(46.2)		 10.5
(50.9)		 13.2
(55.8)		 14.9
(58.8)		 14.6
(58.3)		 12.7
(54.9)		 9.6
(49.3)		 6.6
(43.9)		 4.3
(39.7)		 9.1
(48.4)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 1.3
(34.3)		 1.2
(34.2)		 2.4
(36.3)		 3.6
(38.5)		 5.7
(42.3)		 8.9
(48.0)		 10.8
(51.4)		 10.5
(50.9)		 8.7
(47.7)		 5.9
(42.6)		 3.3
(37.9)		 1.2
(34.2)		 5.3
(41.5)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 127.8
(5.03)		 93.3
(3.67)		 98.1
(3.86)		 74.6
(2.94)		 65.8
(2.59)		 66.0
(2.60)		 83.5
(3.29)		 85.1
(3.35)		 91.5
(3.60)		 122.6
(4.83)		 110.9
(4.37)		 124.6
(4.91)		 1,143.7
(45.03)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 18.7 15.3 17.2 13.7 13.6 12.6 14.0 15.1 14.6 17.7 17.8 17.6 187.7
Source: Met Office[18]

2010 and 2021 temperature records

Castlederg recorded Northern Ireland's lowest-ever recorded temperature of −18.7 °C (−1.7 °F) on the morning of 23 December 2010.[19] The town recorded Northern Ireland's highest-ever recorded temperature of 31.3 °C (88.3 °F) on 21 July 2021. On the 22 July, Armagh reported 31.4 °C (88.5 °F) which has since been rejected by the UK Met Office, meaning Castlederg holds both the highest and lowest temperature records in Northern Ireland. Prior to the 21st and 22nd, the record was also broken on 17 July 2021 with a value of 31.2 °C (88.2 °F) at Ballywatticock.[20][21]

Governance

The town is one of the electoral wards in the Derg district electoral area of Derry City and Strabane District Council. The other wards are Finn, Glenderg, Newtownstewart and Sion Mills.[22] Below are the results of the 2019 Derry City and Strabane District Council election

Derg

2014: 3 x Sinn Féin, 1 x DUP, 1 x UUP
2019: 2 x Sinn Féin, 1 x DUP, 1 x UUP, 1 x SDLP
2014-2019 change: SDLP gain one seat from Sinn Féin

Derg – 5 seats
PartyCandidateFPv%Count
12345
DUP Keith Kerrigan 13.62 1,090 1,092 1,711
Ulster Unionist Derek Hussey* 15.83 1,267 1,279 1,418
Sinn Féin Ruairí McHugh* 13.57 1,086 1,089 1,089 1,089 1,579
SDLP Cara Hunter 12.89 1,032 1,092 1,094 1,194 1,287
Sinn Féin Kieran McGuire* 13.43 1,075 1,081 1,081 1,081 1,232
Independent Andy Patton 9.18 735 784 791 922 981
Sinn Féin Maolíosa McHugh* 9.97 798 806 807 808
DUP Thomas Kerrigan 9.63 771 773
Alliance Anne Murray 1.87 150
Electorate: 12,996   Valid: 8,004   Spoilt: 116   Quota: 1,335   Turnout: 62.48%  

    Education

    The remains of Castlederg Castle

    Primary

    • Edwards Primary School - Established 1938 [23]
    • Erganagh Primary school-closed
    • Gaelscoil na Deirge [24]
    • Killen Primary School - Established 1935 [25]
    • Saint Francis Of Assisi Primary School, Drumnabey, Castlederg
    • Saint Patrick's Primary School - Established in 1973 [26]

    Secondary

    • Castlederg High School Established 1958[27]
    • St Eugene's High School-1961 to 2013

    Sport

    Soccer

    Gaelic Football

    Notable residents

    References

    1. ↑ "Settlement 2015". NISRA. Retrieved 17 August 2023.
    2. ↑ "Castlederg". Place Names NI. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
    3. 1 2 "Census of Ireland 1891". Enhanced Parliamentary Papers on Ireland. Archived from the original on 27 June 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
    4. ↑ "Townlands of County Tyrone". IreAtlas Townland Database. Retrieved 11 December 2012.
    5. 1 2 "Settlement 2015". NISRA. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
    6. ↑ "Castlederg Castle". Retrieved 20 November 2018.
    7. ↑ O'Toole, Fintan (14 May 2011). "Castlederg bronze cauldron, 700-600 BC". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2 May 2020.
    8. 1 2 3 Malcolm Sutton's Index of Deaths from the Conflict in Ireland (search for "Castlederg"). Conflict Archive on the Internet (CAIN).
    9. ↑ "Castlederg station" (PDF). Railscot – Irish Railways. Retrieved 16 September 2007.
    10. ↑ "Census of Ireland 1851". Enhanced Parliamentary Papers on Ireland. Archived from the original on 27 June 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
    11. ↑ "NI Assembly" (PDF). Key Statistics for Settlements, Census 2011. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
    12. ↑ "Census 2011 Population Statistics for Castlederg Settlement". Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA). Retrieved 2 May 2021. This article contains quotations from this source, which is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright.
    13. ↑ "Religion or religion brought up in". NISRA. Retrieved 17 August 2023.
    14. ↑ "National identity (person based) - basic detail (classification 1)". NISRA. Retrieved 17 August 2023.
    15. ↑ "National Identity (British)". NISRA. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
    16. ↑ "National Identity (Irish)". NISRA. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
    17. ↑ "National Identity (Northern Irish)". NISRA. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
    18. ↑ "Castlederg 1981–2010 averages". Met Office. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
    19. ↑ "Northern ireland diary of highlights December 2010" Archived 5 April 2011 at the Wayback Machine. Met Office. Retrieved 14 August 2011
    20. ↑ "Extreme heat: NI records hottest day ever for second time in week". BBC News. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
    21. ↑ "UK climate extremes". Met Office. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
    22. ↑ "The District Electoral Areas (Northern Ireland)". Retrieved 20 November 2018.
    23. ↑ "Edwards Primary School". Retrieved 20 November 2018.
    24. ↑ "Gaelsoil na Deirg". Archived from the original on 12 December 2021. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
    25. ↑ "Killen Primary School". Retrieved 20 November 2018.
    26. ↑ "Saint Patrick's Primary School". Retrieved 20 November 2018.
    27. ↑ "Castlederg High School". Retrieved 20 November 2018.
    28. ↑ Hanna, Gareth (26 May 2021). "Who is Conor Bradley? All you need to know about Liverpool star named in the Northern Ireland squad". Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 24 September 2021.
    29. ↑ "Harper, James 1780-1873". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved 25 February 2022.

    Sources

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